Contact plate apparatus for determining the position of a joystick

Abstract

A user input device, such as a joystick, includes a wiper and a contact plate imprinted upon a printed circuit card. An arm, movable about at least one axis of motion is provided. Movement of the arm about an axis imparts relative movement between an associated wiper and the contact plate. The contact plate includes a plurality of conductive sub-regions. The relative movement of the wiper and the contact plate causes the wiper to sequentially form electrical contact with an individual sub-region, then two adjacent sub-regions, then an individual sub-region, comprising the other of the two adjacent sub-region. A microprocessor decodes an encoded pattern output generated by leads operably attached to the conductive sub-regions.

1 . An apparatus for determining the position of a joystick, comprising: 
 at least one wiper member;    at least one contact member having at least two conductive sub-regions including a first sub-region and a second sub-region;    an arm movable about at least one axis; and    an arm movable in at least one axis of motion and operably attached to at least one of a wiper member and an associated contact member, such that movement of the arm about one axis imparts relative movement of a wiper member and an associated contact member, such that the wiper member is sequentially in electrical contact with only the first sub-region, then both the first sub-region and the second sub-region, and then only the second sub-region.    
   
   
       2 . The invention according to  claim 1 , wherein the contact member further includes a common conductive region which is in continuous electrical contact with the wiper member.  
   
   
       3 . The invention according to  claim 1 , further comprising a conductive lead operably connecting at least one of the sub-regions to an input port of a microprocessor.  
   
   
       4 . The invention according to  claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of conductive leads, each conductive lead operably connecting an associated conductive sub-region to an input port of a microprocessor.  
   
   
       5 . The invention according to  claim 2 , further comprising a conductive lead operably connecting the common conductive region to an input port of a microprocessor.  
   
   
       6 . The invention according to  claim 1 , wherein at least one contact member includes a plurality of conductive regions, and each of the conductive regions includes a plurality of conductive sub-regions.  
   
   
       7 . The invention according to  claim 6 , wherein at least one of the conductive regions includes four conductive sub-regions.  
   
   
       8 . The invention according to  claim 7 , wherein the four conductive sub-regions includes a first conductive sub-region, a second conductive sub-region, a third conductive sub-region, and a fourth conductive sub-region, and movement of the arm about one axis causes the wiper member to sequentially be in electrical contact with only the first sub-region, then both the first sub-region and the second sub-region, then only the second sub-region, then both the second sub-region and the third sub-region, then only the third sub-region, then both the third sub-region and the fourth sub-region, and then only the fourth sub-region.  
   
   
       9 . The invention according to  claim 6 , wherein at least one contact member further includes a nonconductive region disposed between two conductive regions.  
   
   
       10 . The invention according to  claim 9 , wherein the nonconductive region is indicative of a neutral position of the arm.  
   
   
       11 . The invention according to  claim 1 , wherein the user input device includes at least two wiper members and at least two contact members.